Highlights: UK govt extends jobs support to Covid-19 affected firms

A health department official on Friday said at least 784 more people have tested positive for COVID-19 in Jharkhand, which pushed the tally to 90,486, while eight fresh fatalities raised the toll to 775.

At least 212 more people, including five security personnel, have tested positive for Covid-19 in Arunachal Pradesh, pushing the tally to 11,479, a health department official said on Friday. Arunachal currently has 2,778 active coronavirus cases, while the recovery rate stands at 75.60 per cent, reports PTI.

As many as 4,516 people tested positive for the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) in Germany on Friday which pushed the country's tally to 314,660, data from the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) for infectious diseases showed. The reported death toll rose by 11, reports Reuters.

Sri Lankan health authorities were working Friday to contain a growing cluster of new coronavirus infections, ordering the closure of bars, restaurants, casinos, nightclubs and spas, reports AP.

Dozens of people converged on the cobblestone streets of downtown Rio de Janeiro for its traditional Pedra do Sal samba party — the first since the pandemic began — and it seemed Brazil was returning to normal, reports AP.

India’s Covid-19 tally on Friday crossed 6.9 million after 70,496 cases and 964 deaths were recorded in the last 24 hours, according to the data provided by the Union health ministry. The total cases include 893,592 active cases, over 5.9 million recoveries and 106,490 deaths.

An experimental dual vaccine for both influenza and the new coronavirus delivered via a nasal spray will enter human studies in Hong Kong next month, a top infectious diseases doctor said, reports Bloomberg.

The governor’s office said Newsom was tested on Wednesday after someone in the governor’s office tested positive. The staff member who tested positive had not interacted with Newsom or anyone else who often sees the governor, reports AP.

Japan's inflation-adjusted real wages fell for the sixth straight month in August, reflecting a big drop in overtime pay due to the impact on the labour market from the Covid-19 pandemic, government data showed on Friday, reports Reuters.

Saudi Arabia may not be able to rely on annual dividends of almost $75 billion from state oil company Saudi Aramco beyond next year unless crude prices increase, according to Moody’s Investors Service, reports Bloomberg.

China’s yuan strengthened and stocks rose on mainland exchanges, a relaxed start to the month for traders returning to work after an eight-day holiday.

The currency advanced 1.1% as of 9:32 a.m. in Shanghai, tracking recent moves in the offshore rate, reports Bloomberg.

US Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, one of President Donald Trump's most powerful allies in Washington, has avoided visiting the White House for more than two months because of its handling of the coronavirus, he told reporters on Thursday, reports Reuters.

US President Donald Trump's physician said on Thursday that the president had completed his course of therapy for the coronavirus, had remained stable since returning to the White House, and could return to public engagements on Saturday, reports Reuters.

China joined a World Health Organization-backed effort to ensure everyone across the globe is inoculated against Covid-19, reports Bloomberg.

Telugu Desam Party (TDP) national president N Chandrababu Naidu on Thursday stressed the need for the Andhra Pradesh government to make "more serious efforts" in order to save the lives of the people from the impending second wave of coronavirus. Naidu alleged that chief minister was not talking at all on preventive measures and it was more interested in reopening the schools, theatres and liquor shops regardless of the threat of infections, reports ANI.